Masks commonly used by underwater divers, snorkeling swimmers, downhill skiers and the like, typically include a front mask portion with a single or double viewing window or lens, and a strap designed to encircle the user's head to hold the mask tightly in place over the user's eyes. The mask portion is usually made of a flexible rubber composition that seals against the user's skin when in use to prevent water, snow or other materials from entering into the mask and obscuring the user's vision. Such masks may also fit over the user's nose as well. Attachment rings or similar structures on either side of the mask permit the strap to be firmly attached and adjusted to provide the desired level of sealing and comfort for the user. Increasingly, such masks include fairly sensitive viewing windows or lenses, sometimes including corrective optics, that can be easily scratched or otherwise damaged when the mask is not in use.
Despite the risk of damage to the mask viewing window, however, many divers, snorkelers and skiers care for such masks simply by rinsing or wiping them after use and storing them along with other equipment, such as in an equipment bag or the like. In such cases, the lenses of the masks may be inadvertently scratched, broken or otherwise damaged between uses. While special bags may be used for storing the mask individually, such bags are separable from the mask and must be located for storage of the mask following use. The mask remains, therefore, exposed to damage upon return to a dive boat, shore or lodge until the bag can be located and the mask inserted therein.
Another drawback with conventional sport masks is that the strap used to secure the mask to the user's head, typically an elastic rubber or similar flexible strip, may bind on the user's hair or otherwise cause discomfort to the user along the region where it contacts the back of the user's head. Various solutions have been proposed to isolate such straps from the user's hair and to provide a limited degree of padding between the strap and the user's head. In one known arrangement, an elastic panel is secured to a pair of ribbon members that are designed for attachment to the mask. In another known device, a removable elastic panel is designed to receive a portion of a mask strap and to remain attached to the strap both during use and storage. Such elastic panels provide a region over which pressure exerted by the strap may be distributed, reducing discomfort to the user. However, such panels do not provide for storage of the mask, and must generally be placed, along with the mask and strap, in an equipment bag or the like following use, again exposing the mask lenses to potential damage.
There is a need, therefore, for an improved case for sports masks capable of offering convenient storage of a mask when not in use, and which need not be detached from the mask when secured to the user's head. Moreover, there is a need for a mask case that provides padding or otherwise improves the comfort level for the user when wearing the mask, by distributing loads exerted by the securing strap behind the user's head then the mask is worn.